Elizabeth Banks couldn’t be more thrilled to be playing the older sister of Jessica Biel on The Better Sister.
The actress, 51, told Us Weekly exclusively that working with the 7th Heaven alum, 43, on the Prime Video thriller was “really perfect,” in part due to their similarities.
“I am an older sister. [Biel] is younger than me. We’re both boy moms. We look alike. I mean, we got along like a house on fire,” Banks gushed while discussing her partnership with No7 Beauty. “I really loved working with her. She’s Type A. She runs her own business. She has found herself living in a rarefied world.”
Banks and Biel star as Nicky and Chloe, two estranged sisters who are forced together after Chloe’s husband is murdered. Biel “really connected” to Chloe, Banks revealed, adding that she felt similarly about her character, Nicky. The sibling relationship makes the series unique because audiences “see a lot of married couples” in murder mysteries, “but you don’t see siblings who have their full history together right from birth.”
“I think it was right for us,” Banks said. “I have not seen [a thriller] where a sibling relationship is at the heart of it. These two sisters are estranged and their family drama is so serious. They are breaking generational trauma by coming back together. I think you just don’t see that in a whodunit.”
While their characters may be tangled up in a murder on screen, Banks and Biel passed the time off screen much more innocently. The Pitch Perfect alum told Us that the pair often played the Bananagrams with costar Gloria Reuben during their downtimes on set.
“In the middle of the series, we had a full week of just sitting at trial watching people on the stand. [During] those days, we played a lot of Bananagrams. Gloria Reuben — she’s a shark. She plays tons of Scrabble. She was constantly using words that none of us could pronounce or knew. We would look them up and be like, ‘yep, that’s a word she wins.’”
Banks not only stars on The Better Sister, but she also executive produced the project. After a long day on set, the actress reached for her Future Renew No7 collection to help her look and feel her best. Banks revealed that she often “requires an eight-hour night [of sleep],” but Future Renew Damage Reversal Peptide Cleanser and Future Renew Damage Reversal Night Serum leave her feeling refreshed.
“I love the silky feel of it,” Banks said about the products. “I just love it on my skin. I’m glad I’ve added it to the lineup. I was already using the Future Renew Damage Reversal Night Cream and No7 Future Renew Damage Reversal Day Cream, which has SPF 25 in it. You have to have SPF in your day cream.”
The Night Serum and Cleanser are launching exclusively at Ulta.com on June 15, with additional retailers launching later this summer. The existing products in the Future Renew range are available at Walgreens, Target, Amazon and more.
The Better Sister premieres on Prime Video Thursday, May 29.
